Analysis of Literary Works

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Every piece of literature throughout the ages relates to the
individual, faith, and society at the time. In the 17th century John
Donne was a well known poet that had a big influence on the society then and
now. His two works “Song” and “The Indifferent” are both good examples of how
much influence these things have on the world itself.

The poem “Song” by Donne is unique in both its form and the
meaning. The nature of the individual is interesting in this poem because the narrator
seems to be it their own imagination thinking about having a wife and child
bearing. It seems as though the narrator is single looking for someone special
to be with but is not optimistic that they will find one. The reader gets this
idea from the final line in the poem saying, “Though she were true when you met
her, / And last till you write your letter, yet she/ will be/ False ere I come,
to two, or three.”(Donne, p.
605). It seems as though the nature of the individual is that they are
pessimistic.

In the poem “The Indifferent” also by Donne it seems to have what
was normal for format at the time. As the title says it seems as though
throughout the poem the individual is indifferent in nature. As though they too
are looking for love like the narrator in “Song” however, they are trying to
make it seem as though they do not care. Donne does this in the beginning
starting off by saying that the narrator could love pretty much anyone.
However, because he seems to not care he does not put any effort into love.
This is conveyed by saying, “Poor heretics in love there be,/ Which think to
‘stablish dangerous constancy.” (Donne, 1633, p. 607). This
part makes the reader think that the narrator feels bad for the people that do
fall in love because of the dangers of doing so.

Both of these poems have similar themes which are finding love.
What is interesting about the two is that they are both written by the same
author yet they portray two different perspectives on finding love. Donne in
“Song” seems like he is happy to find love and keep looking; whereas in “Indifferent”
Donne seems as though he does not care if he finds love or who he finds it
with.This nature seems to reflect in
what the society thinks about the act of finding love. In one way it is
important but in the other it does not really matter how one finds that special
someone and or if the person they marry is really that special to them. It
seems that as long as they find someone to marry that is all that matters.

Because of this fact it seems that Donne is attempting to express
how society views the process of finding a mate. He makes that narrator of each
poem relate to the society in such a way that they display what is important in
the society. For example in “Song” where he says, “Get with child a mandrake
root,”(Donne, p. 604). This
part makes it clear that one of the main reasons why it is important to get
married is to have child (mandrake root being thought to help women get
pregnant).

Love is the biggest focus in both of these pieces and Donne does
not seem to incorporate faith in either very much. The only part that seems to
reflect a small part of faith in relation to the individual and society is in
“Song”. He strings in a small about of faith and folk tale saying, “Or who
cleft the Devil’s foot, / Teach me to hear mermaids singing,/ Or to keep off
envy’s stinging,” (Donne, p.
604). In this part it seems that the individual does not relation much to
faith except for their fear in what will happen after they die.

The message in these two poems seems to reflect the relationship
between the individual, faith and society is interesting because it seems as
though the requirement of having to get married rules the individual. It seems
as though this requirement is the only thing that matters to the individual
including putting faith on the back burner. However, it seems that aside from
finding a mate faith is the second most important thing but it is low on the
priority list until the “soul mate” is found.

Both poems “Song” and “Indifferent” by John Donne are interesting
pieces that show how the people during the 17th century relate to
their society and faith. Because of how he chose to display this characteristic
of the time period people today are able to fully understand the importance of
finding someone to marry and continue on the family line.

Social environment changes from person to person on a regular
basis. In the short story “The White Heroin” by Sarah Orne Jewett the social
environment changes in a way that changes the way Sylvia, the main character,
views the world for the rest of her life. The choice between the young,
attractive ornithologist and the white heron is not only the choice to not kill
her bird but also the choice to have a better life filled with money and the
ornithologist.

In the beginning of the story Jewett describes Sylvia’s slow life
style that she has more recently become accustom to. She starts off making it
seem very tranquil and slow, “The woods were already filled with shadows one
June evening…A little girl was driving home her cow, a plodding, dilatory,
provoking creature her behavior, but a valued companion for all that…” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1203). In
doing this she shows her life before the interaction with the ornithologist.

Jewett continues with the story discussing Sylvia’s past and how
she came to be on the farm with her grandmother. When she is describing the
situation Sylvia was in she introduces the grandmother saying “Mrs. Tilley…
made the unlucky choice of Sylvia from her daughter’s houseful of children,…” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1204). This
part shows the reader that Sylvia does not think very highly of herself. It
also shows that she views her grandmother in a different sense then what is
typical because she titles her in a more formal way. This gives the reader a
view of how Sylvia views the world.

As she continues to describe her walk in the woods with the cow it
seems to be Sylvia’s safe place. Then she meets the ornithologist on the way
home and she is scared, “Suddenly this little woods-girl is horror-stricken to
hear a clear whistle not very far away. Nor a birds-whistle… but a boy’s…” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1204). This
part shows that just the sound of a male near her is frightening. It makes the
reader wonder of her past and if anything bad happened to her that involved a
male figure.

Sylvia continues to keep her guard up with the young man even
though he is friendly and nice to her. He seems to mean no harm and starts to
walk with her back to her home. Once they make it make to Sylvia’s home the
perspective of the story seems to switch from Sylvia’s to the ornithologist’s.
This switch in view point the story makes the reader wonder what the true
meaning of the visit could mean for Sylvia. While they are eating dinner it is
as though the grandmother is trying to make Sylvia look good to the man. She
talks highly of her and how useful she is.

The ornithologist see’s Sylvia’s usefulness and also seems to find
her attractive, “He listened eagerly to the old woman’s quaint talk, he watched
Sylvia’s pale face and shining gray eyes with ever growing enthusiasm, and
insisted that this was the best supper he had eaten for a month…”(Jewett, 1886, p. 1205). As
the conversation continues it becomes more obvious that he is interested in
Sylvia because even though the grandmother is talking about something upsetting
to her, he continues to ask about Sylvia, “The guest did not notice this hint
of family sorrows in his eager interest in something else” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1206). It is
slightly unclear if he is more interested in his bird collection or Sylvia in
this moment; however, he seems to see the benefit of keeping Sylvia around for
a large variety of things.

The switch back to Sylvia’s point of view is abrupt and shows how
she is does not seem to be interested in not only the conversation but also the
ornithologist. It seems as though she has a sense what the man is really
interested in and she does not want anything to do with him. When he mentions
that he is going after her bird the white heron she gets nervous, “Sylvia’s
heart gave a wild beat; she knew that strange white bird…” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1206). When
the man says that he would give a great deal of money to find that bird,
Sylvia’s social environment gets tenser than before.

Sylvia must choose between her bird, the white heron and her
freedom that she has living with her grandmother. Or she can choose to show the
attractive ornithologist where her bird lives and get her family out of
financial trouble and possibly marry the man but in turn give away her freedoms
and sacrifice her bird. This is the major changing point for Sylvia and how she
views the world.

As she is thinking about all of her choices she goes out to where
the bird is in the woods. Trying to decide what decision she should make she
climbs the tree where she sat with the bird. That is when she decides that she
is not going to tell the man were her bird is and in a sense decides that she
was not going to sell herself for money. Then as the man realizes the Sylvia
has made her choice and even though she knows where the bird is that is not
going to tell him he decides to leave.

After he leaves Sylvia seems to have regretted her decision,
“suffered a sharp pang as the guest went away disappointed later in the day, that could have served and followed him and
loved him as a dog loves!” (Jewett,
1886, p. 1209). When the man finds her bird without her help and kills it
anyways she questions herself even more, “Were the birds better friends than
their hunter might have been,-- who can tell?” (Jewett, 1886, p. 1209). It
seems as though the loss of the possible money and love of a wealthy man was
lost for no reason at all to her at this point. It is here that the reader sees
that Sylvia will never view life as simple as she had before.

Sylvia’s social environment in this story impacted her life in a
major way. Choosing her freedom and her bird had seemed like the right decision
at the time. Then when she did not get to have either her bird or the
ornithologist she did not know what was right anymore.

After the war many people questioned things such as race and
feminist issues. These issues were expressed through a variety of different
authors and poets. Gwendolyn Brooks and Flannery O’Conner are two people that
expressed how they felt about these issues in their writing. Brooks in her work
“The Bean Eaters” and then O’Conner in “Good Country People”. Both writers even
though they had different issues expressed the way they felt in similar writing
styles by having the main character in the story be a victim of the issue.

In the poem “The Bean Eaters” Brooks starts by discussing what the
narrator of the story eats making it sound very simple and almost blain, “They
eat beans mostly, this old yellow pair./Dinner is a casual affair./” (Brooks, 1960, p. 1856). In
these two lines the reader also gets a since that this poem is describing
someone of color because of the phrase, “this old yellow pair.” Then the poem
continues to describe their simple life style by saying, “Plain chipware on a
plain and creaking wood,/ Tin flateware.”(Brooks, 1960, p. 1856).

In the next stanza Brooks continues by describing the couple
themselves and how they live. This part gives the reader a better feel for the
couple and how they are victims of racism. She does this by saying, “Two who
have lived their day,/ But keep on putting on their clothes/ And putting things
away.”(Brooks, 1960, p. 1856).
This part makes it seem as though the couple works hard but does not get their
fair share of pay. It also makes the reader believe that the couple understands
that they will never get their fair share because that is the way life was at
the time.

In the last stanza the reader gets the idea that the couple are
slaves because of the line, “As they lean over the beans in their rented back
room that/ is full of beads and receipts and dolls and cloths,/” (Brooks, 1960, p. 1856). This
stanza makes the reader feel sad for the older couple in their small room
surrounded by their few belongings. This is where Brooks accomplishes her goal
by showing that racism is an important issue during the time period. She does
this by forcing the reader to see how the “other side” lives. Thus making the
reader feel remorse for how they are treated in the time period.

In the story “Good Country People” by Flannery O’Conner she
discusses feminist issues. She starts with the protagonist’s mother narrating
the story. She starts by describing a couple that she hired to do work for her
around her property. This part of the story seems to have to significance until
she starts to describe her daughter and how she is not the typical girl. This
is because the couple that she hires has two daughters that are the typical
girls of the time period. The reader understands this when O’Conner says, “Mrs.
Hopewell liked to tell people that Glynese and Carramae were two of the finest
girls she knew and that Mrs. Freeman was a lady and that she was never ashamed
to take her anywhere or introduce her to anybody they might meet.”(O’Conner, 1955, p. 1991).

When O’Conner switches to Hulga, the daughter’s point of view the
reader gets the impression that her and her mother do not get along very well.
This is because she portrays the girl as being annoyed with her mother right
away saying, “The girl was used to this kind of dialogue for breakfast and more
of it for dinner; sometimes they had it for supper too.”(O’Conner, 1955, p. 1992).

Then as O’Conner continues with the story she switches back to the
mother’s point of view. This is where the reader truly understands that the
mother does not approve of her daughter and how she is. “She thought of her
still as a child because it tore her heart to think instead of the poor tout
girl in her thirties who had never danced a step or had any normal good times.”(O’Conner, 1955, p. 1992).

The reader does not truly understand the purpose of the mother and
daughter not getting along until she says, “The girl had taken the Ph.D in
philosophy and this left Mrs. Hopewell at a complete loss…All day Joy sat on
her neck in a deep chair, reading. Sometimes she went for walks but she didn’t
like dogs or cats or birds or flowers or nature or nice young men. She looked
at nice young men as if she could smell their stupidity.” (O’Conner, 1955, p. 1994).

In this part it is clear that Mrs. Hopewell compares her daughter
to the rest of the “normal” girls. Not only does she have a wooden leg but she
does not believe in God and she is a philosopher instead of a more normal
person. Throughout the story O’Conner makes it clear that these things are not
expectable by her mother but she deals with them anyways.

In the end of the story Hulga meets up with a “Bible sales man”
that seems like a nice young man by her mother’s perspective. She trusts him
and starts to become intimate with him. Then he tricks her into taking off her
artificial leg and steels it leaving her in an old barn unable to leave the
reader sees another aspect of the feminine issue during the time period. It
shows that this girl that is an individual trusts her mother’s judgment of a
man for once and then he is takes advantage of because of her. Making the
reader see not only is it not fair for women to not have all their rights; but
also when following the normal social rules women can get hurt.

In the two pieces “The Bean Eaters” and “Good Country People” by
Brooks and O’Conner readers get a better understanding of social issues of the
time period. Because these authors expressed their opinions on these issue in
such a way people understood and agreed that the issues needed to be fixed.
They in large part expressed how many people of the time period felt and were
successful in their goal to change how people viewed the issues and responded
to them.

Poetry and fiction in the time between World War I and World War
II related in some ways and differed in others. Robinson Jeffers poem “To the
Stone Cutters” and Katherine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall”
is two pieces that were written in this time period, being good examples of the
differences between poems and fiction. One of the main similarities is the need
to leave a good legacy.

In the poem “To the Stone-Cutters” Jeffers discusses how poets are
remembered in the time using the term “Stone Cutters”. It seems as though the
main focus of the poem is to discuss the legacy that poets leave on the world
after they are gone; “The square-limbed Roman letters/ Scale in the thaws, wear
in the rain./ The poet as well/ Builds his monument mockingly;” (Jeffers, 1924, p. 1630). This
part of the poem shows readers the true meaning and that the poets are like
stone cutters in that they make history and it lasts for a long time.

The short story “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” by Porter
focuses on a very similar topic as “To the Stone-Cutters”. In this story the
main character is a woman that is on her death bed. Her family is visiting her
in her final moments and she is reminiscing in her mind about her life and
things that she wished she had gotten done. “They had been so sweet when they
were little. Granny wished the old days were back again with the children young
and everything to be done over.” (Porter, 1929, 1930, p. 1735)
In this part Porter displays how the women feels about what she is leaving
behind when she dies. This story’s theme is similar to “To the Stone-Cutters”
because both discuss what the main character leaves behind after they are gone.

Many people during this time period and after were concerned with
what they left for people after them. Both Porter and Jeffers make that a clear
concern for the people in this time period. One piece discussing the poets
carving their legacy in “stone” so that people remember them when they are gone
saying, “Stone-cutters fighting time with marble, you foredefeated/ Challengers
of oblivion” (Jeffers, 1924, p.
1629). Then with the women who is concerned that she raised her children
right so that she left something good behind to be proud of. This story showed
this by saying, “Sometimes she wanted to see John again and point to them and
say, Well, I didn’t do so badly, did I?” (Porter, 1929, 1930, p. 1736).

Because both authors where writing during the same time period it
is clear that they were affected by the same trends and outside focuses. During
this time period of war many people were affected by the death of their family
members. This most likely made them reflect more on what they left behind when
they were gone because they were left behind after their loved ones died.

The environment does not seem to affect one writer more than the
other. Both the Porter and Jeffer seem to be affected by the environment in the
same way. Because both express that they are concerned with their legacy.
Jeffer expresses this by saying, “For man will be blotted out, the blithe earth
die, the brave sun/ Die blind, his heart blackening: Yet stones have stood for
a thousand years, and pained thoughts found/ The Honey peace in old poems.”(Jeffers, 1924, p. 1630).
Porter expresses how the same environment affected her by saying, “While she
was rummaging around she found death in her mind and it felt clammy and
unfamiliar. She had spent so much time preparing for death there was no need
for bringing it up again.”(Porter,
1929, 1930, p. 1735).

As one looks at the form of the poem “To the Stone-Cutters” it
would seem like it was not influenced by other art forms such as jazz music.
However, if one looks at the form that music takes they would see that poetry
and music are very similar. This is because they both typically have rhythm and
rhyme. Because of this both jazz music and poetry of the time period would
affect each other equally.

When one looks at a short story such as “The Jilting of Granny
Weatherall” they would not think that the author was affected by something such
as an essay. This is because the essay is a more formal piece of writing.
Whereas the short story is more of a creative process not held by the
boundaries that the essay has. Therefore making the short story more affected
by the authors surroundings and own ideas of how they want to convey their
alternate reality.

In the pieces “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” by Katherine Anne
Porter and “To the Stone-Cutters” by Robinson Jeffers one sees the concern of
legacy. This is one of the main similarities in these two pieces even though
they are completely different types of art. This shows that many people during
this time period were affected by the same thing and that was death.

20th century poetry changed what the idea for what was
proper poetry. During this time imagery was one of the main focuses while
writing poetry. Many authors made this a main focus in their works. Some of
those authors were Carl Sandburg, Amy Lowell, and William Carlos Williams.
Using imagery these authors discussed several different topics including their
political views and insight on what was going on in the time period.

William Carlos Williams used imagery in many of his poems. One
poem that is a good example of his use of imagery while discussing his view on
the politics at the time is “Tract”. In this poem he vividly describes a
funeral and the traditions of the funeral service. He describes each aspect of
the funeral with a sense of disgust. Throughout the poem readers get the idea
that he is not only talking about the formality of a funeral but also the
routines of people in the society at the time, as if they are not being
genuine. For example, when he is discussing the driver of the hearse it seems
like he could be talking about the leaders in America, “For heaven’s sake
though see to the driver!/ Take off the silk hat! In fact/ that’s no place at
all for him-/ up there unceremoniously/ dragging our friend out to his own
dignity!...” (Williams, 1916,
p. 1563). This insinuates that he thinks in some ways the government does
that to its people.

Amy Lowell is another poet that used imagery in a large part of
her poetry. In the poem “Patterns” she describes a women walking in a garden
thinking about her “pattern” in the society that she lives in. As she goes
through the garden she paints a picture of the person that she is supposed to
be in society’s opinion. “My dress is richly figured,/ and the train/ makes a
pink and silver stain/ On the gravel, and the thrift… The dripping never
stops./ Underneath my stiffened gown/ is the softness of a woman bathing in a
marble basin…” (Lowell, 1916,
p. 1533). As she describes her pattern and then how it contrasts to the
background it makes the reader see that she has a more harsh reality then what
society thinks she has.

Lowell continues her imagery throughout the entire poem. About
halfway through she starts to discuss the main characters fiancé that was
killed as a soldier. This part shows how much the war during the time effected
people and their lives. It emphasizes that because of this, and the pattern her
fiancé was expected to keep he died and she could not be with him anymore. “In
a month he would have been my husband./ In a month, here, underneath this
lime,/ We would have broken the pattern/…/Now he is dead.” (Lowell, 1916, p. 1534).

Another poem by Lowell that she uses imagery describing the time
period that she lived in called “A Decade”. In this poem she describes how she
views the decade in a small amount of words. Even though the poem is short it
gives the reader a very vivid picture of her view of the decade that she is
describing. “When you came, you were like red wine and honey,/ And the taste of
you burnt my mouth with its sweetness./…/ (Now) I hardly taste you at all for I
know your savour,/ But I am completely nourished.” (Lowell, 1919, p. 1535). In this
small amount of words the reader understands how bitter sweet the decade that
she lived in was.

Carl Sandburg is another author that uses imagery to describe the
time after war. One poem is called “Fog”. This is a short poem that talks about
a cat in the fog, it’s shortness makes the reader see that the time after the
war is like the cat in the fog just coming and going. “The fog comes; on little
cat feet./ It sits looking/ over harbor and city/ on silent haunches/ and then
moves on.” (Sandburg, 1916, p.
1464). As the reader reads the poem they can clearly imagine the cat coming
and going in the fog just as the time of peace came and went for the people.

Another
poem that Sandburg wrote that he uses imagery to describe this decade is
“Grass”. In this poem he discusses how grass covers all of the signs of war,
including the bodies of the dead. “Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and
Waterloo./ Shovel them under and let me work-/ I am the grass; I cover all.”
This part shows that the grass does not care what it covers and where it grows.
Even though people do care nature does not. In these short stanzas the reader
understands that. “Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor: What
place is this? Where are we now?/ I am the grass./ Let me work.” (Sandburg, 1918, p. 1465). In
the last part the reader sees that the time passes and that a place that was
once significant, no one in the present knows that significance anymore.

“Southern
Pacific” is another poem that Sandburg wrote using imagery describing the time
period. In this poem he discusses the difference between classes and the
similarities. Sandburg shows in form and in imagery how alike and how different
the two men from the time period. “Huntington sleeps in a house six feet long./
Huntington dreams of railroads he built and owned… Blithery sleeps in a house
six feet long./ Blithery dreams of rails and ties he laid.”(Sandburg, 1918, p. 1466). In
these lines the reader gets the image of how similar and how different the
classes of this time period were.

William
Carlos Williams, Amy Lowell, and Carl Sandburg were all very talented imagery
poets. The imagery helped readers understand the time period and how to
envision life during that time. It also made how people felt during the time
period clearer. Because these poets expressed themselves in this way, people of
today are still able to experience and better understand how things were in
that time and learn from it.

Like
one big family poets have similarities and differences. Some are vast and some are
not. Amy Lowell and Robert Lowell are not only both poets but also they are
related. The differences and similarities in their poems range from their form
to the subjects that they discuss, thus making an interesting comparison.Giving the reader deeper insight in how their
backgrounds affect their writing and how that is portrayed in their writing.

Amy
Lowell was born into a wealthy family in Brookline. She attended private
schools during her early education and also was educated by governesses and
European travel. Needless to say she was well educated and well off from the
start. Once she hit her twenties, she started to work harder on her poetry and
had her first poet published at thirty-eight. She was the most popular during
the First World War (Perkins
& Perkins, 2010, p. 1532)

A.
Lowell had a unique style that made readers attracted to her poetry. One of the
main things is her form in them. She seemed to have a visual pattern that she
followed in her line length that went medium, shortest, short, longest, long,
medium, long, medium, long, short, ect. This line length one can see almost
throughout the entire poem “Patterns” and also in “A Decade”. (Lowell, 1916, p. 1534)(Lowell, 1919, p. 1535)

The
form in her poems is not the only thing that was unique to A. Lowell. The
subjects that she discussed in the way that she does are also unique. In her
poem “Patterns” she discusses one of the time periods main concerns, which was
war and how it affected the people in the United States. The way she portrays
the main character and how the story plays out it makes out the girl and her
lover to be victims of the war. In her poem “A Decade” she also discusses main
concerns of the time period and displays how people feel about what is going on
around them. Reading these two poems the reader gets a good sense for what the
people of the time period thought and believed about their society.

One
of the main things that one looks at after knowing A. Lowells background is her
wealth. Coming from wealth many people would assume that it would affect her
writing. Looking farther into her writing and her topics one is drawn to the
conclusion that her wealth affects her perspective on things. This is mostly displayed
in her poem “Patterns”. Throughout the
poem it seems as though the girl is similar to A. Lowell herself, she is well
off and somewhat sheltered from the world. That is why the girl feels as though
she is a victim of what has happened. If this poem was written from a person’s
point of view that was not wealthy it may have focused more on how they were
going to survive after the lover’s death. (Lowell, 1916, p. 1534)

Robert
Lowell was raised very similar to Amy as that he was also born into wealth and
was well educated. Like Amy he attended Harvard University. He was first
published in his late twenties and two years later won a Pulitzer Prize. Unlike
Amy Lowell he had a little bit earlier start and a family history of literature
and poetry. (Perkins &
Perkins, 2010, p. 1859)

R.
Lowell’s poems are very similar in form in comparison to A. Lowell. He seems to
follow the same pattern in line length: medium, shortest, short, longest, long,
medium, long, medium, long, short, ect. This is noticeable in almost all of his
poems including “For the Union Dead”, “Skunk Hour”, and “The Neo-Classical
Urn”. (Lowell, 1960, p. 1865)

Many
of R. Lowell’s poems are also about important topics during the time period.
Even though he does not seem to focus on that in all of his poems like A.
Lowell does, one poem that he does is “For the Union Dead”. He seems to try to
keep a large variety of subjects in his works. In doing this the reader gets a
better understanding as to how he feels regarding a variety of different
subjects.

In
R. Lowell’s writing it seems as though he is less sheltered than A. Lowell. The
reader sees this in the topics that he discusses and also the way that he
describes them. The fact that they lived in different time periods could be
part of that. Another aspect of that could be because A. Lowell is a female and
lived a more sheltered life because of that.

Both
Amy Lowell and Robert Lowell wrote amazing and inspiring poetry. They
influenced people and taught them about the way life was during their time.
With similar yet different lifestyles so is their poetry similar but different.
The similarities are what make the reader think, and the differences are what make
the reader intrigued. Making both poets famous for what they do and how their
writing effects people then and now.

During the 18th century the idea of women’s rights was
quite a bit different then what it is today. During that time women were
expected to take care of home duties and be a good wife to their husband and
mother to their children. They were not looked at as having the same rights as
men during the age and often times were punished for doing something that men
did regularly. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu expressed these ideas and how she felt
about them in her two pieces “The Lover: a Ballad” and “Epistle from Mrs. Yonge
to Her Husband”.In these pieces she
attempts to display the ideal of woman’s rights through various persuasive
techniques.

In Montagu’s piece “The Lover: a Ballad” she portrays a girl that
has the longing to find a lover and a spouse but is unwilling to give herself
to anyone. Unlike many women during the time period she was not going to just
marry someone because they could take care of her, she wanted love. “From such
a dear lover as here I describe/ No danger should fright me, no millions should
bribe;/ But till this astonishing creature I know,/ As I long have lived
chaste, I will keep myself so…”(Montagu,
1747, p. 1199). In this part she conveys her feelings on the subject in a
way that makes the audience realize what her intentions are in writing the ballad.
This reshapes the idea of the romance poem because it shocks the reader. Prior
to this part they believed that this is a romantic poem when really it is poem
discussing a sensitive subject for women during the time.

In “The Lover: A Ballad” the linguistic structures and literary
techniques Montagu uses makes the reader see further what her goal was in
writing it. Throughout this piece she uses strong language for the time to
portray her feelings about the subject of getting married to just anyone. Some
examples of this is in the first stanza when she says, “This stupid
indifference so often you blame/…/ I am not cold as a Virgin in lead,” (Montagu, 1747, p. 1198). She continues on describing this feeling by
comparing it to being cheated and that she will not be tricked. Every word that
she uses is important to her ultimate goal.

After two stanzas of describing how bad a life of being married to
someone she did not love would be, she continues describing how she imagines
being married to someone she does love. When Montagu describes what she sees as
right in a marriage it makes the reader see how she feels and her real point of
view on the topic. “Let the friend and the lover be handsomely mixed,/In whose tender bosom my soul might confide,/
Whose kindness can sooth me, whose counsel can guide,/ From such a dear lover
as her I describe…” (Montagu,
1747, p. 1199).Because of this
contrasting the reader understands what Montagu is trying to say and they feel
the same as she does that it is a woman’s right to marry who she wants to. She
gets her idea across very successfully because the reader continues to feel
that way after they read the ballad.

“Epistle from Mrs. Yonge to Her Husband” Montagu portrays the same
idea of women’s rights but in a different way. Her language and form of the
poem make the reader sympathize for the women that has fallen victim to society’s
standards. Montagu starts by asking the reader to not feel sorry for her and
her situation. The opening stanza makes the reader wonder what she is talking
about. As she continues into the next section the reader realizes automatically
that it is about the unfairness towards women during the time. She does this by
saying, “The weak submissive sex of womankind./ If sighs have gained or force
compelled our hand,/ …/ Whatever motive binds the fatal tie,/ The judging world
expects our constancy.”(Montagu,
1742, 1972, p. 1200).After reading
this the reader wonders what this woman went through to make her feel this way
about life.

The history of this piece is particularly important because it is
the entire reason why the narrator feels the way she does about her rights as a
woman. The narrator was treated unfairly by her ex-husband when he found out
the she had had an affair. The treatment that he gave her was unfair because he
too had been having an affair and never got punished. The language that she
uses gets this idea out without describing her full story completely.

The way that Montagu’s strategy works well is because it keeps the
audience wondering until they know a little background on the story. However,
without the background story the reader still fully understands that the
narrator had been treated unfairly, thus bring up woman’s rights. The part that
the reader starts to fully understand some of the background is, “Renounce your
fortune, and release your vows./ To custom (though unjust) so much is due;/ I
hide my frailty from the public view/ My conscience is clear, yet sensible of
shame,/ My life hazard, to preserve my fame.” (Montagu, 1742, 1972, p. 1201).
This part gives the reader an idea of where the poem is going.

Montagu continues portray the need for having more rights as a
women when she says, “Dragged into light, my tender crime is shown/ And every
circumstance of fondness known./ Beneath the shelter of the law you stand,/ And
urge my ruin with a cruel hand,/ While to my fault thus rigidly severe,/ Tamely
submissive to the man you fear.”(Montagu, 1742, 1972, p. 1201).
In using the words such as “dragged”, “tender crime”, “cruel hand”, and
“submissive” Montagu makes her point clear that the narrator is a victim of the
society’s standards and expectations for women and their rights.

Montagu gets her point across very well by using the words and
phrases that she does. One can see that because by the end of the poem not only
is the reader feeling sorry for the narrator but they are also feeling
compelled to stand up for their own rights. Because of this her ultimate goal
is clear and also accomplished.

Overall both of these poems portray the need for women’s rights in
the 17th century in two distinct ways. Both are strong perspectives
and persuade the reader of Montagu’s point of view. Because both narrators in
the poems were strong and willing to stand up for their rights it makes the
reader stronger and more willing to stand up for theirs. This ultimately makes
Montagu a strong inspirational person in the beginning of the women’s rights
movement.

During the 18th century the idea of women’s rights was
quite a bit different then what it is today. During that time women were
expected to take care of home duties and be a good wife to their husband and
mother to their children. They were not looked at as having the same rights as
men during the age and often times were punished for doing something that men
did regularly. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu expressed these ideas and how she felt
about them in her two pieces “The Lover: a Ballad” and “Epistle from Mrs. Yonge
to Her Husband”.In these pieces she
attempts to display the ideal of woman’s rights through various persuasive
techniques.

In Montagu’s piece “The Lover: a Ballad” she portrays a girl that
has the longing to find a lover and a spouse but is unwilling to give herself
to anyone. Unlike many women during the time period she was not going to just
marry someone because they could take care of her, she wanted love. “From such
a dear lover as here I describe/ No danger should fright me, no millions should
bribe;/ But till this astonishing creature I know,/ As I long have lived
chaste, I will keep myself so…”(Montagu,
1747, p. 1199). In this part she conveys her feelings on the subject in a
way that makes the audience realize what her intentions are in writing the ballad.
This reshapes the idea of the romance poem because it shocks the reader. Prior
to this part they believed that this is a romantic poem when really it is poem
discussing a sensitive subject for women during the time.

In “The Lover: A Ballad” the linguistic structures and literary
techniques Montagu uses makes the reader see further what her goal was in
writing it. Throughout this piece she uses strong language for the time to
portray her feelings about the subject of getting married to just anyone. Some
examples of this is in the first stanza when she says, “This stupid
indifference so often you blame/…/ I am not cold as a Virgin in lead,” (Montagu, 1747, p. 1198). She continues on describing this feeling by
comparing it to being cheated and that she will not be tricked. Every word that
she uses is important to her ultimate goal.

After two stanzas of describing how bad a life of being married to
someone she did not love would be, she continues describing how she imagines
being married to someone she does love. When Montagu describes what she sees as
right in a marriage it makes the reader see how she feels and her real point of
view on the topic. “Let the friend and the lover be handsomely mixed,/In whose tender bosom my soul might confide,/
Whose kindness can sooth me, whose counsel can guide,/ From such a dear lover
as her I describe…” (Montagu,
1747, p. 1199).Because of this
contrasting the reader understands what Montagu is trying to say and they feel
the same as she does that it is a woman’s right to marry who she wants to. She
gets her idea across very successfully because the reader continues to feel
that way after they read the ballad.

“Epistle from Mrs. Yonge to Her Husband” Montagu portrays the same
idea of women’s rights but in a different way. Her language and form of the
poem make the reader sympathize for the women that has fallen victim to society’s
standards. Montagu starts by asking the reader to not feel sorry for her and
her situation. The opening stanza makes the reader wonder what she is talking
about. As she continues into the next section the reader realizes automatically
that it is about the unfairness towards women during the time. She does this by
saying, “The weak submissive sex of womankind./ If sighs have gained or force
compelled our hand,/ …/ Whatever motive binds the fatal tie,/ The judging world
expects our constancy.”(Montagu,
1742, 1972, p. 1200).After reading
this the reader wonders what this woman went through to make her feel this way
about life.

The history of this piece is particularly important because it is
the entire reason why the narrator feels the way she does about her rights as a
woman. The narrator was treated unfairly by her ex-husband when he found out
the she had had an affair. The treatment that he gave her was unfair because he
too had been having an affair and never got punished. The language that she
uses gets this idea out without describing her full story completely.

The way that Montagu’s strategy works well is because it keeps the
audience wondering until they know a little background on the story. However,
without the background story the reader still fully understands that the
narrator had been treated unfairly, thus bring up woman’s rights. The part that
the reader starts to fully understand some of the background is, “Renounce your
fortune, and release your vows./ To custom (though unjust) so much is due;/ I
hide my frailty from the public view/ My conscience is clear, yet sensible of
shame,/ My life hazard, to preserve my fame.” (Montagu, 1742, 1972, p. 1201).
This part gives the reader an idea of where the poem is going.

Montagu continues portray the need for having more rights as a
women when she says, “Dragged into light, my tender crime is shown/ And every
circumstance of fondness known./ Beneath the shelter of the law you stand,/ And
urge my ruin with a cruel hand,/ While to my fault thus rigidly severe,/ Tamely
submissive to the man you fear.”(Montagu, 1742, 1972, p. 1201).
In using the words such as “dragged”, “tender crime”, “cruel hand”, and
“submissive” Montagu makes her point clear that the narrator is a victim of the
society’s standards and expectations for women and their rights.

Montagu gets her point across very well by using the words and
phrases that she does. One can see that because by the end of the poem not only
is the reader feeling sorry for the narrator but they are also feeling
compelled to stand up for their own rights. Because of this her ultimate goal
is clear and also accomplished.

Overall both of these poems portray the need for women’s rights in
the 17th century in two distinct ways. Both are strong perspectives
and persuade the reader of Montagu’s point of view. Because both narrators in
the poems were strong and willing to stand up for their rights it makes the
reader stronger and more willing to stand up for theirs. This ultimately makes
Montagu a strong inspirational person in the beginning of the women’s rights
movement.